Heart's Perplexity
by Aggie
Summary: Inuyasha cannot get these strange dreams of Naraku out of his head. After reading a definition on the word 'dream', he is wondering if he is developing a new feeling. Meanwhile, Naraku has plans to kidnap Kagome. (InuxNara shonen-ai fic- you've be warned)
1. Chapter 1 The First Dream

Heart's Perplexity

Disclaimer: I did not make the characters, nor do I own them, from this series. I simply made a fanfic of my favourite yaoi couple from Inuyasha. Thank you. ^^ Enjoy!

NOTE: I used Japanese words in here just for effect. If you don't know the words I made a little dictionary right here:

youkai = demon

shine = die

nani = what

baka = stupid

**__**

Chapter 1

"Yup, this is definitely a good day!" Inuyasha said proudly right after another another demon was destroyed by a swing of the Tetsusaiga. Another shikon shard was recovered.

"Don't get too discouraged Inuyasha," Miroku started saying. "We're still far from collecting all the shikon shards and Naraku still has a whole batch that we need to get."

"You don't have to tell me things I already know. Feh, another swing with my Tetsusaiga and Naraku will be begging for mercy. Hahaha!"

The sun was almost ready to set. The whole group (Inuyasha, Kagome, Miroku, Sango, and Shippo) was ready to find a good place to rest. It wouldn't be long until they would have to be ready for another attack from Naraku's strong youkai army. The group was able to find a small shack-like house where they would be able to regain their energy and wake up nice and early for the next morning. Everyone said a good night and in almost an instant everyone was fast asleep. 

All of a sudden, Inuyasha found himself in a dark area, where the grass was moist and a mist of purple and black fog made it unable to see anything past five feet. _Where am I? How did I get here? Where are the others?_ Inuyasha was thinking to himself. Then all of a sudden, looking out of the corner of his eye, a dark-shadowed figure came forward from out of the mist, slowly coming towards Inuyasha. It was Naraku. Naraku stood there a couple of feet distance from Inuyasha. He wore his normal baboon pelt, but he let down the top of it like a hood, showing his face and his long black hair.

Without even another slight thought, Inuyasha took out Tetsusaiga (which transformed now) and swung it forward, pointing it straight at Naraku. Naraku stopped, and didn't do anything afterwards.

"So, you've finally seen yourself as the coward you are." Inuyasha started. "Just stand right there, and I'll finally kill. This is for everyone. For Kagome, Sango, Miroku, Shippo….. for everyone!!" Inuyasha darted towards Naraku, ready to take one final swing. 

"SHINNEEEEEEEEEEEEE!!!!!!!!!!"

Then, all of a sudden, everything became so slow. There was no sound. All Inuyasha saw was the thick mist and the half-shadowed Naraku only a few feet in front of him. Inuyasha was still running, but extremely slow, almost as if it was in slow motion. _What was happening….._

Inuyasha was so close to Naraku, and took a strong swing with his sword at his body, but the sword went right through him. _NANI?? What happened???_ Inuyasha kept running slowly for some reason. He couldn't stop. Inuyasha was only a few inches away from Naraku. He was so close. That was his biggest chance to kill him, but something was wrong. Why did the attack not work? Was Naraku plotting something? 

Inuyasha's body (completely out of his own control) finally came to a stop. He was so close to Naraku at the moment. Naraku stood before him, he was taller than Inuyasha by quite a bit. Inuyasha couldn't move, he just stood there with a million thoughts and questions in his head. _What the hell is going on? Why can't I move? This is Naraku's doing. This is some kind of trap. He's going to try and kill me and take the rest of the shikon shards. Baka. I don't have them with me. Kagome and the others are not here. But then if he kills me the others are easy prey. Naraku no baka. I hate you. I hate you so-_

His thoughts stopped dead. His mind went completely blank. The next thing that happened made Inuyasha's heart stop and made him completely out of breath. He couldn't breath.

Naraku brought up his right arm slowly and placed his hand on Inuyasha's left cheek. Everything froze. The two of them. Standing there. Inuyasha still couldn't move. He couldn't think. There was nothing he could do…

Then Naraku opened his lips….. calmly….. gazing into Inuyasha's eyes….. ready to say something to him…

__

Inuyasha……….. I-

"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"

Inuyasha brought his eyes into focus. Inuyasha was back at the small shack. Kagome stood straight up from where she was sleeping, staring at Inuyasha. So were the others. Inuyasha screamed so loud that Shippo was running around. Miroku grabbed his tail and calmed him down.

Kagome was the first to ask Inuyasha. "Inuyasha, what's wrong? What happened?"

Everything was silent once more. Inuyasha was thinking to himself again. _Yeah, what was wrong? Why did I scream? Did I have a nightmare? _Inuyasha thought back to his dream, remembered what Naraku did, and covered his mouth. "Eep….."

Sango made her turn. "Eep? What do you mean? Is there something outside?" Sango looked outside and checked around. Right when she came back in, Miroku shook head head and smirked.

"Nah. I'm sure Inuyasha just had a bad nightmare. Right?" Miroku poked Inuyasha who seemed to be out in space at that moment with his own thoughts.

"Wha? Oh….. yeh….. that's all it was. A nightmare….."

Inuyasha made a sigh of relief. Yet, questions in his mind kept troubling him. _Why did I have that nightmare? What was Naraku doing? Does this have some kind of meaning?_

"What was it about?" Kagome asked. Inuyasha started at her for about a minute.

"Well?"

"Uh….. what?"

"The nightmare, Inuyasha! What was your nightmare about??"

Inuyasha looked down. What was he going to do? He couldn't possibly tell them about that nightmare with Naraku and what he did to him. He had to make a substitute….. a PERMANENT substitute….. what else was scary….. what else was scary…

"Uh….. uh….. I dreamt that….. uh….. y…..you died."

Silence. 

"That….. I died?" Kagome looked a bit surprised.

"Uh yeh… it kinda startled me for a bit." Inuyasha finally got up and grabbed everything he needed. "But it was just a nightmare that's all. I feel much better now. Come on guys, let's go."

Everyone slowly got up, getting their stuff. Kagome was still looking at Inuyasha. Inuyasha was noticing this and tried to look away. _Damn….. that was really stupid….. now Kagome will be asking me stupid questions….. why….. why did I have that stupid dream? In that matter, why did stupid Naraku had to be in it? Damn Naraku….._

All of them got out of the shack and headed through the clear path between the forest. That nightmare would be stuck in his head all day. 

__

I hate him…..


	2. Chapter 2 What is dream?

__

Heart's Perplexity

Disclaimer: I did not make the characters, nor do I own them, from this series. I simply made a fanfic of my favourite yaoi couple from Inuyasha. Thank you. ^^ Enjoy!

****

NOTE: I'm really having fun with this fanfic. I know some of you are probably not used to seeing an IY/Naraku yaoi story like this, but hopefully I'll make this story better and better. Here's chapter 2! ^^

**__**

Chapter 2

The morning was a bit cold, and the sun was just over the horizon. Shippo lay asleep again on Kagome's knapsack as she carried it. Miroku stared at nothing else except of what was ahead of them, ready for anything. Sango looked constantly gazed as if thinking of other things, but that was normal for her. Inuyasha was the only one who wasn't feeling **_normal_** in the group, nor did he look like it. He kept his head tucked in and not looking at the path ahead, his thoughts took over all his senses. Nothing else was in his mind except that dream. Not even about killing youkais or getting the Shikon no Tama to become a full youkai… just the dream…

Inuyasha tried his best to forget about that stupid nightmare. That's all it was. A nightmare. A fake. Nothing more. He knew the difference between dreams and reality. But, what did the word _dream_ actually mean? What was its definition………?

The group finally stopped walking when the sun reached its highest in the sky. They found a nice area of grass where they would settle on for a little while to regain their energy from all the walking. All those hours of walking and nothing youkai-ish came near them. It was a little bit suspicious almost.

Miroku went to find some wood to make a fire for food. Sango and Kagome took a few buckets and made their way to the stream to gather some water. Sango went first, but Kagome stood there for a little while, staring at Inuyasha.

"Inuyasha……," she began to speak.

"Uh…what?" Inuyasha turned around from staring at the dirt on the ground.

"Is there something wrong Inuyasha? You've been quieter than usual today. Are you… thinking about that dream you had last night?"

Inuyasha paused for a second. "What? The dream? Feh…" He stood up with a grin and laughed. "Why would I be sitting here thinking about that stupid dream? I don't care. It's not real right?"

Kagome opened her mouth about to say something, but then closed it and ran after Sango.

Inuyasha sat back down. He was hearing snoring from behind him. He turned around and saw Shippo still asleep on a flat rock. Inuyasha shook his head. Then something else caught his eye. Kagome's knapsack. He looked around, then at Shippo, and then back to the bag. He made his way towards it. He picked it up by the handle with on hand. It was quite heavy. He recalled Kagome saying she had to carry a lot of books to study so she can be ready for school every time she went back to her world.

Inuyasha sniffed the bag twice and started opening it. _Hmmm… maybe one of these things can tell me about what a dream is…_

Kagome had in her bag five large textbooks. Inuyasha sniffed each one and made his way to the fourth one. Three words were engraved on the cover. Inuyasha couldn't understand the first two words. The characters looked a bit different than he ever saw, but he tried his best to say out the third word. 

_di…ku…shon…ar…ii……….._

It was a dictionary. Inuyasha never saw a book like this before. In that matter, he never saw books in his life. The only things he saw ever written were in the past when he was a child. At his home he would find scrolls that belonged to his mother. He always had fun reading those. The characters looked so interesting…

Inuyasha opened the book. He almost choked with surprise. He never saw that many japanese characters in his entire life. Hardly a third of them looked familiar to him. How would he ever find what he was looking for?

It didn't take long before Inuyasha realized the book was alphabetized. He flipped the pages quickly. A few ripped at the bottom but he didn't notice. 

Let's see……… dream……… dream…………

After ripping another twenty pages, it looked like he found it. Dream. He began to read the strange characters the best he ever could.

"Dream. A se..ries of pic..tures…… thoughts…… and emo…tions……ex……expe…experien…ced… in the… mind when… sl…… sleepi…ng…

He thought out the words for a bit. It took a while to think about the word experienced for some reason. It looked like such a big word. Then, a different word from that definition stumbled in his thoughts. Emotions. 

Emotions…

What did it mean by emotions? What kind of emotions?

Before he could turn another page, he heard rustling of branches from far off. Miroku was coming back. Another rustle from the other direction signaled that Kagome and Sango were returning as well. Inuyasha, in a complete struggle, stuffed the heavy and thick book back into the bag and shoved the rest of the books in as well. He closed the back and sat back where he did before, beside the snoring Shippo. It was only luck that at that time Shippo made his way out of his nap and sat up scratching his eyes.

Everyone carefully munched whatever was made in the pot over the fire. Although everyone seemed silent at that time, in their eyes they were dying to start up a conversation. Anything.

"Hey," Kagome started. "Anyone want to read something from my textbook? Well, since you probably don't know the characters, they are quite different from the ones here, so I'll read you something."

As Kagome was opening her knapsack, Inuyasha felt a cold shiver go down his spine. _Would if she found out what I did? What will she think?_

Kagome reached out for her books. That was when she made a confused face. "Something is not right here. I'm sure I didn't put these books in this order. Did someone…-"

"AHHHHHHHHH! LOOK OUT!!!!! IT'S A YOUKAIIII!!" Inuyasha screamed. He brought out Tetsusaiga to make the lie look more believable. It worked. Everyone got up in a fright and looked around. 

"Where? Where's the youkai??" Sango shouted, one hand on her Hiraikotsu (her boomerang weapon) ready to shoot it. Kirara stood behind her ready to transform.

_Oh great… _Inuyasha thought. _I got their minds off the books, but what am I supposed to do now???_

****

"Oh… uh… sorry… false alarm. Hehe…"

Everyone stared at Inuyasha, their eyes so wide as if ready to blast red lasers from them at Inuyasha. Inuyasha actually felt a little frightened by them. Miroku got really furious.

"WHAT DO YOU MEAN FALSE ALARM??" Miroku grabbed Inuyasha by the neck and started strangling him like a rag doll. Shippo told him to calm down, and he dropped his grip on Inuyasha making him fall on the ground.

"Come on guys, it was a mistake ok? I thought I saw something in the bushes but it was probably a small animal or something okay? Feh…" Inuyasha put Tetsusaiga back, sat down and ate the rest of his food. He kept his head down the whole time knowing that the others were still staring at him. _I've been such a baka today. Look at them. They think so too. Why am I acting like this? I wish I never had that dream._

Inuyasha closed his eyes for a bit, then opened them and got up. "Okay guys, let's keep going."

The trail seemed so long and at this time Inuyasha was dying for a youkai to pop out from the top of the trees. Even a huge one will do. Anything to get his mind off last night, or even most of today. Most of his thoughts were on that one word, emotions. He started thinking about the kinds of emotions he felt. He remembered the emotions he had in the past when he was in love with Kikyou. He had emotions when being around others, like friends or family. He also had emotions when fighting youkai and Naraku. Yet… something felt different about that. 

_That dream…_

What emotions did I feel that night? What emotions did I feel when Naraku put his hand on my face? It can't be what I think it is… It can't be…-

His thoughts were interrupted by a punch on the shoulder by Miroku. He turned around and saw Miroku smiling at him. "Cheer up Inuyasha. You seem down in your thoughts today, it's not like you. We need that little idiot to start up something again."

"NANII?!?!?!" Inuyasha shouted and started to choke Miroku. Everyone was laughing. Inuyasha laughed too. He wanted to thank Miroku then for making him forget what he was thinking. He wanted to thank him a lot...

****

End of Chapter 2

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Eeeee, how do you like this so far? Not TOO much is happening, but it's only the second chapter so MUCH more will be happening really soon. I will soon write something in Naraku's point, which will definitely change things. Hehehe… please review! I want to know your opinions! ^^


	3. Chapter 3 Naraku's Plan

Heart's Perplexity 

Disclaimer: I did not make the characters, nor do I own them, from this series. I simply made a fanfic of my favourite (random) shonen-ai couple from Inuyasha. Thank you. Enjoy!

NOTE: Incredible... I just couldn't picture myself working on this fic after two years. I must say, I have all of you reviewers to thank. If it weren't for you (because throughout the two years there have been many requests to keep this fic going) I'm pretty sure I would've deleted Heart's Perplexity a long time ago. Now, I'm ready to get back into it. Chapter 3 is finally here. MIND YOU, this is during the time when the Shikon shards are still scattered across the globe. Sorry, I cannot put after what episode the fic takes place.. just think around the earlier episodes. Ehehehe.. (P.S. I've finally put some Naraku POV-ness.. hahaa! P.P.S. If you review, I'll continue writing more chapters! Muahaha! Ahem.. please review. Thank you!)

* * *

**Chapter 3**

The day was ending all too soon as Inuyasha and the group searched drastically for a new spot to rest for the night. Then, as they walked over a large green hill, they spotted a small village at the bottom of a valley. It was very small, but in tact, which meant it was presumably safe. Perhaps they would be able to have a more comfortable sleep tonight.

"This looks like a great place to settle in for the night," Miroku said as they entered the village.

"But how will we be able to sleep here? We have no more money," Sango said in a disappointed tone.

"Ah, don't worry dear Sango. I will definitely find us a good place," Miroku said, patting the woman's back. Sango gave him a deadly glare, which could be translated into a warning for him not to bring his hand any lower than where it was.

Kagome, listening to the two, could not help but giggle. It was a relief to have a peaceful walk with them rather than ruffling through the stress of getting the rest of the Shikon no Tama shards. Although her mission was clear, her current desire was to spend a nice time with Inuyasha and the others rather than fighting youkai.. or worse.. cramming for her school tests.

_I know I failed that mathematics test last week... _Kagome thought to herself. A heavy sigh followed as she did her best to keep her mind in the present.

All the while, Inuyasha stayed silent. He was not thinking about the dream anymore; there were definitely far more important things ahead of him and the others, and he finally realized that. As they walked through the village, the people would gasp at the red-clothed hanyou walking with the humans. Inuyasha was far too familiar with this action and brushed it off, yet feeling quite smug that even though he was not hurting anyone, he was still looked upon as a threat. Appearance was an important part of defense.

They stopped at a fairly large house that appeared to have many rooms. A middle-aged man with thin gray lines through his black hair slid the door open to greet them.

"Good evening," he said, "how may my people and I help you?"

"Good evening to you too, sir," Miroku spoke as he stepped out of the group. "My name is Miroku. I am a monk, and my people and I are in need of shelter and food for tonight and tomorrow morning. However, I'm afraid to say that we have no money."

"Oh, I am terribly sorry, dear monk, but even at your class we cannot accept people who have no change. Please accept our apologies," the man said, sounding saddened but did not seem to have that expression on his face. Inuyasha smirked in disgust at Miroku's failed attempt.

"Ah, I understand completely. And my apologies for wasting your ti-... Huh? What is that?" Miroku's tone of voice quickly changed as he looked to his left and then his right. He put his feat and arms in a defensive position, and took out a thin piece of spell paper.

The others, jumping at Miroku's sudden reaction, looked from left to right. There was nothing out of the ordinary, but afterwards they understood what the monk was up to.

"What is it?" the man asked, now looking very concerned.

"It is... a powerful youkai energy... a youki..." Miroku began. He slowly walked closer to the house and place one hand on the sturdy wood. "This place is filled with it... I can feel them moving... how strong it is..."

"What? This cannot be! Oh, how horrible! Youkai! Demons! In my own resting area! All my customers are in danger! Please, dear monk, you must do something!" The man said, easily falling for Miroku's trick.

"Of course," Miroku answered, placing the piece of paper on the wood. With his other hand, he put his index and middle finger together and began chanting under his breath. All that the others could do was wait until they would eventually get into the place. There was not doubt about it now.

Once he finished, Miroku looked back at the worried man. "Do not worry. If you let my crew and I stay here for just one night, I can guarantee you that the evil demon spirits shall vanish without any of your customers worrying or complaining."

"Oh, thank goodness!" the man yelled, literally throwing himself onto the ground. "You and your people are more than welcome to stay for the night, free of charge! And have all the food you want!"

The group smiled as they thanked the man and entered the house. All but Inuyasha, who simply marched into the area. As the man got up, he started at the half-demon. "Uh, uh.. is this a.."

"Do not worry," Miroku said, entering last, "he is a hanyou. I promise you, he is completely harmless.. he wouldn't hurt a fly if his life depended on it."

_Jackass.. too bad you're not a fly, Miroku, _Inuyasha said as he gave the monk an angered look. Nonetheless, they all had a lovely place to stay for the night, free of charge, and all the food they wanted. What more could they ask for?

* * *

Once the sky reached the limit of darkness, everyone in the village was asleep. However, across the fields and many mountains away, one hanyou did not dare to rest. Naraku, Inuyasha's worst villain, leaned on the wall of his home, the youki mist filling every corner of the area. He breathed it in as he contemplated on his next plan. Suddenly, Kagura came into the room, breaking the silence.

"Naraku, I found Inuyasha and his company. They are currently sleeping in a small village many mountains by. It is a distant travel, but I believe I can return and take a chance to retrieve the Shikon shards.." Kagura said in one breath. Although she did not enjoy being loyal to the hanyou, she had no other choice. Her very life was on the line, and if she could finish off Inuyasha and bring the Shikon shards to Naraku, then maybe she had a chance of freedom.

"Going all that way again is pointless," Naraku pointed out straight-forwardly. "I have my own plans and I will not have them intercept with your own. As of now, we have a special target to focus on."

"Hasn't our target always been Inuyasha?" Kagura asked, but then felt quite empty-headed. The answer was obviously yes. Now, the tables were turning.

"Kagome," Naraku said in a silent tone. "It is not only her own significant power, but also Inuyasha's affection towards her."

"...affection?" the wind goddess tried to say. What did Naraku know that she did not?

"He loves her," Naraku continued, "but only subconsciously. However, it only seems obvious to me. Kagome is the perfect bait for my next plan."

There was an awkward pause. Kagura wanted to say something, but she was not sure of what. She never heard Naraku talking about love, but there were certain things she knew that she would never dare speak of in front of him. Things such as Kikyo. Naraku's goal was to vanquish the woman so he would be in complete control. _But didn't Inuyasha always foolishly love Kikyo?_ she said to herself. Kagura certainly did not enjoy being held in the darkness like this.

"Kagura, the plan will be set out as followed," Naraku spoke once again, standing up and moving towards her.

She did nothing but stand there, waiting to hear her master's newest scheme.

* * *

A gust of wind flew past Inuyasha, temporarily distorting his senses. When the mist disappeared, he saw a blurred figure standing in front of him. He instantly suspected it was Naraku and drew out Tetsusaiga. He began running up to the figure, ready to chop his head off. And then, the figure grew into full clarity.

It was Kagome.

Inuyasha stopped in his tracks and gradually brought his sword down. "Kagome? What are you doing?"

Before she could respond, the ground began to tremble violently. Inuyasha almost lost his balance, but managed to stay in control. He looked up, seeing that Kagome was in danger. "Kagome! Wait there! I'm coming!"

The ground was beginning to shatter. Through the cracks emerged large forest green vines that surrounded Kagome. She tried to run away from them, but the vines quickly wrapped around her arms and legs, holding her in the sky and continuing to grow from the ground.

Debris was flying everywhere as Inuyasha ran as fast as he could to Kagome. The vines continued to lift her high into the sky. Once he got to the large vines, he slashed Tetsusaiga against them. However, the green roots did not take any damage. Losing time and ideas, his best chance now was jumping as high as possible to save her.

The blocks of ground were getting larger around him, trying to hit Inuyasha as he looked up to where Kagome was. The surface seemed to be either disappearing or lifting upwards. He took one large leap into the air, using the blocks to guide him to the girl.

"Kagome! I'm coming!" Inuyasha yelled at the top of his lungs. Kagome was reaching one hand down to Inuyasha. She appeared to be shouting something, perhaps his name, but there was no sound going past her lips.

With one more block, Inuyasha jumped and made a dive towards her. He was so close. He was going to rescue Kagome and she would be safe from harm.

Suddenly, Kagome's image began to fade. Inuyasha only blinked once, and Naraku took the girl's place. _What!_ the half-demon said in his mind and he uncontrollably flew towards him. He tried to bring his sword up, but a large piece of debris hit his hand, causing Tetsusaiga to float far away.

Before he knew it, his body was touching the vines that were wrapped around Naraku instead of Kagome. The scenery began to move very slowly. Inuyasha tried to have his mind digest what was going around him, but time was now against him.

The roots were now beginning to wrap tightly around Inuyasha. He tried his best to resist, but his arms and legs were completely out of his power. All the while, Naraku stared at him.

"What is this Naraku? What are you doing to me?" Inuyasha yelled in anger. Naraku drew his head closer to Inuyasha's. He had a disturbing smell that the hanyou could not stand. He wanted to be far away from him as possible. No, he wanted to kill him.. kill him right there. He wanted to.. so badly..

Naraku brought his lips right near Inuyasha's ear. The scenery broke, and everything was turning white. Inuyasha could feel his body breaking up from beneath him. Perhaps this was all a...

"Inuyasha, I l-" 

"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH! NOOOOOOOTTTTT AAAAAAAAAGGGGGAAAAAAAAAIIIIIIINNNNNNNNNNN!"

Kagome, Miroku and Sango woke straight up, fairly startled at Inuyasha's cry. Outside of the door, they could hear other people waking up with a surprised tone in their voices.

"Inuyasha! You just woke everyone up! What's the matter?" Sango asked, annoyed that the half-demon had disturbed their slumber.

"Ugh! Nothing, okay?" Inuyasha shouted, closing his and scratching the back of his ear very hardly. He ignored everyone's anger and concentrated on his own. After all the difficulty he went through trying to forget his previous dream, another one with Naraku in it rises and refuses to leave his thoughts alone. Why was he having these dreams? What did they mean? What was Naraku trying to say to him?

"Just go back to sleep!" Inuyasha shouted. Perhaps that was enough to make them leave him alone.

"None of us can get back to sleep now! You're just lucky the sun's about to rise," the irritated Sango continued to yell as her eyes shifted to the nearest window. The sun was, in fact, making its way above the horizon. All the while, Kagome and Miroku exchanged awkward glances, not wanting to be part of the argument. The only ones who did not awaken were Shippou and Kirara, who continued to rest peacefully in the corner of the room. Kagome quickly glanced at them, wondering how on earth such creatures could have slept through that.

Continuing to ignore anyone and everything in his path, Inuyasha stormed out of the house so he could be alone. The villagers were still in their own homes, so solitary time was definitely possible in the area; he was glad for that. He crossed his arms and watched the sun rise until his eyes could not bare to watch the sharp rays of light anymore.

Considering how he was, Inuyasha was doing a good job of containing his fury deep within himself. He knew it was just a dream.. and the other one was just a dream as well.. they were all dreams.. nothing else. But, they left a strange feeling in Inuyasha. He could not name this feeling, or even describe it.

_Dream. A series of pictures and emotions experienced in the mind when sleeping._

He remembered that definition very well. He was definitely feeling a new emotion, but it only seemed so clear to him in his dream, not in reality, which made this all the more irritating for him to think about. He wanted to know what this feeling was... and if it was possibly Naraku who caused the strange emotion.

Inuyasha pushed away his thinking process as someone slid the front door open. When he turned around, he saw Kagome standing in the opening with a concerned look on her face. Then he remembered, Kagome was in his dream. She was in danger in his dream, and he did whatever he could to save her. He could not understand why she suddenly changed into Naraku, so he ignored that for a moment. The point was, that feeling also had something to do with her.

"Inuyasha," she began, "I'm sorry if I did anything that made you this way. I don't know what you dreamed of, but you know I'm willing to help whenever I ca-"

"I'm sorry, Kagome," Inuyasha interrupted her. Kagome did not continue, so he did. "I didn't mean to storm out like that."

There was a long pause, and then Inuyasha began to walk towards her. She slid the door shut, waiting to see what he would do.

"You don't have to worry about me, Kagome. Just... let me protect you whenever you're in danger..."

"Inuyasha.. what are you-"

He brought a hand against the wall at Kagome's side. His thumb gently touched the girl's silky black hair. "It's nothing, okay? Just let me protect you no matter what the cost."

Kagome smiled at Inuyasha. Although the tone of his voice was strenuous, she could still feel the kindness of his soul.

"I always do."


End file.
